Celibidache Rehearses Bruckner’s Ninth

Sergiu Celibidache rehearsed Bruckner’s ninth symphony with the Munich Philharmonic for an extended and intense period. Using previously unreleased 16mm footage, the film focuses on the conductor for unusually long sequences, revealing the musical interaction in this tantalizing process of rediscovering a seemingly familiar piece.

Co-produced by BR and ARTE
Supported by Media+

Additional

Sergiu Celibidache Munich Philharmonic Orchestra

Quotes

Sergiu Celibidache

"Take your time. I'm breathing with you. I breathe in there and that's the secret of the phrasing: where and how to breathe."

"What is a rehearsal? It is, of course, only a labor of memory, of cognition. A rehearsal is not music! A rehearsal is the sum of countless 'no's. 'Not so fast!', 'not over the bassoon!', 'not so loud!', 'not so lifeless!' 'not like that'. 'No! No! No!'. How many 'no's are there? Trillions! How many 'yes's? Only one!"

"It is really a godless era. So, normally Bruckner doesn't have much of a chance. People have to come along who are concerned with the question: Is everything that we can see and touch, is that all? He's incredible. The apotheoses of the final movements can only have been felt, thought out and written by someone who really had a feeling for eternity!"

"We always think that there's an interpretation. An interpretation of what? How can you interpret a landscape? If you have to go from Plön to Eutin, are there interpretations? Or do you have to come up with the lakes, the forests, the pathways and so on? Here too there are particulars that are anchored in your consciousness. You can't interpret them. You can experience them - and that's the difference!"

"You think that's a theory. The fact is that before we experience the sound, the conceivability of the sound is incredibly important! 'How should it sound?' The same goes for conducting. What is my only worry when I start? How is it supposed to sound? It's the same with you because your fingers alone will never find it. It is an absolutely unconventional leap, that is, it happens in the mind. The conceivability of the sound is what's most important. It can happen that it's clear within you but not for your fingers. That's all possible. But one thing is for sure: if you can't conceive the sound in your mind, your fingers will never be able to hit it."